Cabinet



y 1939. F. B. WISEMAN 2,158,713

CABINET Filed Dec. 27, 1957 M/l/ENTOR. Fred 5. Wise/nan A T TORNE yPatented May 16, 1939 UNITED .STATES PAT E N T OFFICE 5 Claims.

This invention relates to portable cabinets and carrying-cases adaptedfor the storage and convenient transportation of a plurality ofarticles, such as tools, and has as an object to provide 5 an improvedcabinet arranged to facilitate access to and orderly storage of thearticles housed therein.

' A further object of the invention is to provide an improved portablecabinet wherein a plurality of independently-swingable leaves arearranged for the support of articles housed within said cabinet anddisposed for cooperation with each other and with other elements of saidcabinet to complete the cabinet enclosure.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved portablecabinet that is simple and inexpensive of manufacture, susceptible ofpractical embodiment in a variety of specific forms and arrangements,adapted for the storage and 20 transportation of a multiplicity ofarticles in readily accessible position and relation, .and which ishighly practical, convenient, and efficient in use.

My invention consists in the construction, arrangement, and combinationof elements hereinafter set forth, pointed out in my claims, and.illustrated by the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is anisometric view of one simple and convenient construction of a cabinetembodying the principles of the instant invention, wherein said cabinetis shown in assembled, closed position ready for practical use. Figure 2is a horizontal section taken transversely of the showing of Figure 1,broken lines indicating alternative positions of certain elements of theconstruction. Figure 3 is a vertical section taken on substantially theindicated line 3-3 of Figure 2 and illustrating certain modifications ofcon- .struction not shown in the latter figure. Figure. 4 is ahorizontal section taken transversely of a modified construction andarrangement of elements constituting a portable cabinet. Figure 5 is afragmentary, detail section on an en 45 larged scale, illustrating thecooperation of adjacent movable elements in effecting closure of thecabinet assembly. Figure 6 is a view similar to Figure 5 andillustrating a modified arrangement of the cooperating adjacent movableelements. Figure 7 is a fragmentary, detail view, partly in section,illustrating rolling support means advantageously associated with themovable elements of the cabinet assembly. Figure 8 is a fragmentary,detail view of the upper margins of movable elements of the assembly andillustrating an arrangement designed to prevent the hooking of one ofsaid elements over the forward margin of an adjacent element.

The improved cabinet comprises, essentially, top and bottom memberssuitably and rigidly interconnected in spaced, parallel relation, a sidewall member fixedly connecting between said top and bottom members, anda plurality of indepently-swingable leaves hinged to said fixed sidewall member and constructed and arranged to cooperate with the top andbottom members, and with each other, to complete a cabinet enclosurewherein the spaced leaves define storage compartments adapted to housearticles suitably supported on and carried by said leaves. In theconstruction illustrated by Figures 1, 2 and 3, the cabinet frame isshown as comprising a rectangular bottom member lo, a correspondingrectangular top member I l spaced in vertical registration with andabove the member Ill, a back wall !2 fixedly connecting betweencorresponding margins of and in perpendicular relation with the memberslit and II, and a suitable brace l3 fixedly engaging and extendingbetween the margins of the members Ill and II opposite to those engagedwith the back plate l2. The cabinet frame resulting from the cooperativeassociation of the elements H), H, I2 and I3 is a rigid unit open onthree sides and maintained in the relationship desired by means of thefixed engagement of the back wall l2 and brace I3 with the top andbottom members. To close the sides of the cabinet frame adjacent theback member 12,

panels i of a size to fill the area defined by adjacent margins of themembers H), II and. 12,

spacing as may be expedient or desirable in a given construction, eachof the leaves I6 being hinged, as indicated at IT, to said back memberl2 to swing freely and in'substantially fill- Intermediate the ingrelation between the frame members I0 and 7 ll about an axis fixedrelative to the back member l2. The forward margins of the panels l4 andleaves it terminate adjacent the plane defined by the forward edges ofthe frame members l9 and I l and are provided with angularly---relatedfianges or-hea-ds 18 disposed to marginally abut in coplanarrelation when the panels l4 and leaves l6 are swung to perpendicularrelation with the back member I2, and thereby close the front area ofthe cabinet frame, the panels I 4 functioning to close side portions ofsaid frame when in the relation specified. Cooperating ears l9 may beformed on the top member H and panels 14 in position to register whensaid panels are in closing relation with the cabinet frame and therebyprovide means for latching the assembly in its closed position, pins orlocks of suitable type being readily engageable with the registered earsto prevent their separation and thus preclude opening of the cabinetuntil the latching means has been released, immobilizing of the panels Min closing relation with the cabinet frame acting to fix the leaves H5in coplanar alignment of their head elements [8 as a frontal closure forthe cabinet assembly. A suitable handle 29 may be fixed to the topmember H for convenience in lifting, carrying, and transporting thecabinet and its contents.

The panels 14 and leaves I6 provided with head elements 18 in a given orinitial construction of the assembly suflice to close and complete suchassembly, though it may be that the number of leaves It is inadequate tothe contemplated use of the assembly and that the spacing betweenadjacent leaves 86, or between the panels [4 and the adjacent leaves I6,is in excess of that required for the contemplated use of the assemblyand could be advantageously employed for additional storage. To adaptthe construction for adjustment of its storage capacity, additionalhinge elements ll are preferably provided on the back member l2intermediate the hinge elements I! and between the hinge mountings l5and H, which elements H are disposed and arranged for cooperation withcomplementary elements carried by one margin of a supplementary leaf i6which may thereby be mounted to swing in the same manner as the leavesl6 between said headed leaves or between a panel l4 and the adjacentleaf Hi. The supplementary leaves I6 do not carry the head or flangeelements [8 and are of a size to terminate just within the elements [8carried by the leaves IS. The supplementary leaves l6 may be added to orremoved from the original assembly as desired, and may be used in suchnumbers and combinations with the original assembly as may best adaptthe latter to a particular use or function.

Since the leaves 16 swing about separate axes, there is a tendency forone margin of a head element l8 to hook within or without and henceoverlap on the adjacent margin of the head element carried by anadjacent leaf it, thus making it difficult to properly align said headelcments as a front closure for the assembly. This difiiculty may beconveniently obviated by the construction shown in Figure 8, whereinguide flanges l8 are provided on and in fixed relation with top marginsof the leaves I8 and panels i4 and in perpendicular relation with saidleaves and panels immediately below the top member I! of the assembly,said guide flanges l8 pref erably being marginally coincident with thehead elements I8 and tapering from their junction with said headelements rearwardly and toward the hinged margins of the leaves andpanels. Since the guide flanges l8 are disposed in a common planeperpendicular to the hinge axes of the leaves and panels, margins ofsaid guide flanges Will engage with like margins of adjacent flanges, orbe engaged by the upper corners of the head elements l8 and thus preventthe overlapping of one head element [8 on any portion of an adjacenthead element.

In the construction according to Figure 4, the elements of the inventionare essentially the same as hereabove described, and differ from thoseshown in Figure 1 in form and specific details of arrangement, only. Themodified construction contemplates the use of arcuate top and bottommembers having the form of incomplete circular discs 2|, which discs areinterconnected in the desired spaced relation by means of a fixed post22 engaging between their centers and functionally and structurallyreplacing the back member l2 of the first disclosure. The side panels l4and intermediate leaves It are hinged to and grouped about the post 22and extend radially therefrom to support arcuate head and flange members18 disposed for edge engagement to define a cylindrical outer wall forthe assembly, the segment omitted from the members 2| providing a spacewherein the panels I l may swing toward each other to permit separationof the head and flange element I8 for access to the compartments definedbetween the panels M and leaves l6, as is clearly shown by broken linesin Figure 4. The modified construction just described may include thelatching ears l9 and a plurality of brace members It, not shown inFigure 4, to function for the purpose and in the relationship specifiedfor said elements hereabove, as well as the auxiliary hinge elements H,the supplementary leaves l6, and

the guide flanges l8 as previously described in connection with therectangular embodiment of the invention.

As is clearly shown in Figure 3, the inner surfaces of the panels 14 andboth surfaces of the leaves lfiand I6 are adapted to receive and supportthe articles to be stored and transported in the cabinet. Suitablebrackets, hooks, clips. and like conventional supporting means may bedisposed on and about the supporting surfaces specified in anyarrangement suitable to position and group articles within the cabinetfor convenience of use and facility of access, a plurality ofconventional tool elements being shown in Figure 3 in a convenientgrouping on a portion of one of the leaves It. In addition, trays 23 maybe horizontally disposed in fixed relation on and for extensionperpendicularly from the surfaces of the leaves I6 and I6 and panels Il, in such number and specific arrangement as may be advantageous ordesirable, which trays are convenient for the reception, storage, andtransportation of articles, tools, and accessories too small in size orotherwise not adapted for independent support against the verticalsurfaces.

The improved cabinet may be formed of. any suitable material in anyspecific manner adapted to the construction described, and the hingemounting of the panels I4 and leaves I6 and It may be varied in itsspecific construction to best fit the materials and fabricating methodsemployed in a given instance. ginal registration and coplanar alignmentof the flange and head elements [8 and I8, adjacent margins of saidelements are preferably formed to meet on curved areas rather than alongplane margins, one of said edges being concaved for reception of andcooperation with a convex adjacent edge, as is clearly shown in Figures5 and 6; the construction of Figure 5 relating to arelatively-thick-walled arrangement, such as To facilitate marwouldresult from the use of wood or like material, while the showing ofFigure 6 relates more directly to sheet metal or like thin-walledconstruction.

In relatively large embodiments, or where the leaves It and I6 areheavily loaded, it may be expedient to provide a rolling bearing betweenthe forward lower corners of said leaves and the bottom member H! torelieve the hinge connection of strain, in which event an arrangementsuch as is shown in Figure 7, and comprising a springbacked ball element24 recessed Within the lower margin of a leaf It in position to bearagainst and roll on a track element 25 carried by or recessed within thebottom member Ill, may be associated in equivalent form with one or allof said leaves I6.

Since the invention is susceptible of practical embodiment in a varietyof forms and specific arrangements, and since variations andmodifications in the construction, form and arrangement of the elementsshown and described may be had without departing from the spirit orprinciple of the invention, I wish to be understood as being limitedsolely by the scope of the appended claims, rather than by any detailsof the illustrative showing and foregoing description.

I claim as my invention- 1. A cabinet comprising a rigid frame includingspaced top and bottom members in fixed relation with an interconnectingback member, swingable panels hinged to margins of said back member andarranged to close side portions of said frame at times, a plurality ofswingable leaves independently hinged to said back member in spacedrelation intermediate said panels, and flanges on the free margins ofsaid panels and leaves adapted to cooperate in abutting relation to forma front closure for said frame when said panels are disposed in closingrelation with the frame side portions.

2. A cabinet comprising spaced top and bottom members in fixed relationwith an interconnecting back member, panel elements hinged to oppositemargins of said back member and swingable into and out of closingrelation with side portions of the assembly, a plurality of leafelements independently hinged to said back member in spaced relationintermediate said panels, and flanges on the free margins of said paneland leaf elements arranged for coplanar, marginal interengagement toform a frontal closure for the assembly when said panel elements are inclosing relation with the side portions thereof.

3. A cabinet comprising spaced top and bottom members in fixed,perpendicular relation with an interconnecting member, swingable panelshinged to said interconnecting member between and in perpendicularrelation with said top and bottom members and disposed to form sideclosures for the assembly at times, a plurality of swingable leavesindependently hinged to said interconnecting member in spaced relationperpendicularly between said top and bottom members, and flange elementson the free margins of said panel and leaf elements disposed forcooperation through marginal interengagement to complete the enclosureof said assembly when said panel elements are in side-closingrelation'therewith.

4. In a cabinet having spaced top and bottom members in fixed relationwith an interconnecting member, article supporting and carrying meansarranged to facilitate access to articles housed within the cabinet andcooperable to complete the cabinet enclosure, said means comprisingpanel elements hinged to said interconnecting member in perpendicularrelation between said top and bottom members and swingable into and outof side closing relation with the assembly, a plurality of leaf elementsindependently hinged to said interconnecting member in spaced relationperpendicularly between said top and bottom members, andflange elementson the free margins of said panel and leaf elements disposed formarginal interengagement to complete the assembly enclosure when saidpanel elements are in side-closing relation therewith 5. A cabinetcomprising a rigid frame including spaced top and bottom members infixed relation with an interconnecting back member, swingable panelshinged to margins of said back member and arranged to close sideportions of said frame at times, 'a plurality of swingable leavesindependently hinged to said back member in spaced relation intermediatesaid panels, flanges on the free margins of said panels and leavesadapted to cooperate in abutting relation to form a front closure forsaid frame when said panels are disposed in closing relation wtih theframe side portions, and supplementary leaves removably and replaceablyhinged to said back member between adjacent flanged leaf and panelmembers.

FRED B. WISEMAN.

